Three candidates vying for two spots open on FRRPD board of directors

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Feather River Recreation and Park District board of directors candidates Steve Rocchi, left and Sonny Brandt speak during a candidates forum held at the Feather River Recreation and Park District office in Oroville, Calif. on Oct. 11. Candidate Kent Fowler was not in attendance.

Rocchi was appointed by the board earlier this year to take over the position left vacant by Don Noble. Fowler is at the end of his first four-year term.

A forum for the candidates was hosted on Oct. 11 by the League of Women Voters and the American Association of University Women. Fowler was unable to attend because he was ill, so the Mercury-Register caught up with him in an interview on Monday.

Fowler

Fowler, the owner of Fowler Pest Services, said he was running because the work he campaigned on, such as bringing the district parks up to a higher standard and improving public safety and maintenance of the parks, is not yet finished.

At the forum, Rocchi, a local optometrist, said he supported the idea of an aquatic center for the district if it wouldn’t be a significant financial risk and that he thought the best location for it would be adjacent to the Activity Center. Brandt, who is retired, said the district needed to make sure it could afford maintaining and operating an aquatic center and that it was too soon to pick a location for one.

Fowler said he would love for the district to have an aquatic center but that it wasn’t the right time, as the district was struggling to maintain the facilities it already had, and he would need to see details on the cost. He added that he thought Riverbend Park or the Nelson Sports Complex would be a more appropriate location than land adjacent to the district Activity Center which Don Noble, the former board director who has proposed the project, owns.

Asked about future potential projects to be funded by the Supplemental Benefits Fund, or SBF, Fowler said the focus should be on riverfront development and that the completion of the Brad Freeman Trail would be a good use of SBF money. He suggested that funding could go toward needed maintenance work on the trail and the addition of two park rangers to patrol it.

Rocchi

Brandt and Rocchi said they thought trail expansions along the Feather River would be a good use of the money. Rocchi also said that perhaps the SBF could fund an aquatic center.

Fowler said the district could generate more revenue by getting corporate sponsorship for amenities like concerts in the park. Rocchi said the district could generate revenue by hosting events like weddings and concerts at the Riverbend Park amphitheater once it opens.

Brandt said he needed to look at the district budget and didn’t offer any specific ideas at the forum.

Asked about the amount of affordable programming provided by the district, Fowler said the district generally did pretty well on that front but that there was room for improvement when it came to gymnastics. He said many participants were from out of the area and that it would be great to look into getting grant funding so that more local kids could afford the program.

Rocchi also said the district offered many facilities at low or no cost and did not mention any ideas for providing additional low cost programs. Brandt suggested that youth in Thermalito were underserved and that the district should provide programs in Thermalito.

Brandt

When asked at the forum why the candidates wanted to run for office, Rocchi joked that he was running “for the glory.” He said he was tied to the community, had experience serving on boards and wanted to give back to the community he loved.

Brandt said his family had benefited greatly from district and that he wanted to give back since he had more free time in the retirement phase in his life.

Risa Johnson covers the city of Chico, local politics and general news for the Chico Enterprise-Record and Oroville Mercury-Register newspapers. She has written extensively about the Oroville Dam crisis. She is a proud alumna of Chico State University. Reach her at 530-896-7763.